Starkville High School JMG inducts new members
Several Starkville High Students were initiated into the Jobs For Mississippi Graduates (JMG) program at SHS on Tuesday, Feb 4.
The program seeks to reduce dropout rates by exposing at-risk students to opportunities for career and academic advancement. It is the state arm of the national Jobs for America’s Graduates organization. In the ceremony, the SHS group initiated its new members and installed its new officers, including president Zakaria Rogers. The ceremony was attended by parents and SHS teachers, as well as community leaders.
Armstrong Middle School Assistant Principal Ra’mon Forbes gave the keynote address and Justice Court Judge Larnzy Carpenter swore the new officers in.
In his address, Forbes encouraged the students to work toward their future goals.
“I had an opportunity to look up the mission of JMG, and JMG’S mission is to keep young people in school through graduation and provide work-based learning experiences that will lead to career advancement opportunities or to enroll in a postsecondary institution that leads to a rewarding career,” Forbes said.
He spoke about each point of the JMG vision, which is “Achieve success by overcoming barriers and factors that cause students to drop out of school”
“One of the things we know is that it is a challenge for certain students to graduate from high school, and we know how valuable and we know how important education is,” Forbes said. “The number one thing that jumped out to me is that we’re assisting these students in overcoming barriers and overcoming factors keeping them from graduating from high school.”
“The number one thing I want to give to you tonight is I want to let you know that you’re an overcomer,” Forbes added. “What are the things that you have stated tonight? It’s ‘to believe, to dream and to achieve.’ To believe, number one, you’ve got to believe in yourself. You have to have that innate desire inside of you. You have to have confidence that whatever the goals you have, many of you in here have different skills, different skillsets.”
He also encouraged the students to push themselves toward their goals.
“The bigger your dream, the more you’ve got to push yourselves to connect to your potential that’s on the inside of you,” Forbes said.
He also encouraged the students to find their purpose in life, reminding them that everything in life has a purpose.
“I want to let you know that you have a purpose,” Forbes said. “What does that mean. “That means there are skills. There are gifts on the inside of you that nobody else can do, nobody else. There’s something for you to do. There’s something significant. There is a solution that you bring to this world.”